Coster: New tactical response model keeps police safe

September 23, 2021

Police Commissioner Andrew Coster broke down the $15m plan and why it's important for both the public and officers.

Police Commissioner Andrew Coster said the newly announced Tactical Response Model is about keeping Kiwi officers safe as assaults against police continue to rise in New Zealand.

Coster spoke to Breakfast on Thursday morning after the Government announced on Wednesday $45 million was being invested into police frontline safety.

Coster said the $15 million Tactical Respose Model will train around 200 officers to Armed Offender Squad level but will be unarmed unless required in specific deployment.

"It's about making sure we have trained staff available for when they are required," Coster said.

"We've had a really big increase in assaults on officers in the last five years and that's also reflected in presentations of firearms and discharges of firearms at police.

"Those things are very concerning to us."

Coster said New Zealand's policing environment has changed heavily in recent years, including responses to two terror attacks and the death of an on-duty officer in Auckland 

"We've seen a real shift in attitude from some offenders towards police and their willinginess to use violence against us," he said.

"I think it's fair to say that our environment has evolved a lot but our training hasn't...our training needs to keep pace with what our people are facing out there."

Coster added the new Tactical Response model was not the Armed Response Team - a trial initiated in 2019 that came under heavy criticism as it saw members of the Armed Offenders Squad performing patrols in communities that weren't necessarily under threat.

WELLINGTON, NEW ZEALAND - APRIL 08: New Police Commissioner Andrew Coster speaks during the All of Government COVID-19 update, where he warned would-be holidaymakers that police will be out in force to ensure lockdown rules are followed over Easter, at Parliament on April 8, 2020 in Wellington, New Zealand. New Zealand has been in lockdown since Thursday 26 March following tough restrictions imposed by the government to stop the spread of COVID-19 across the country.  A State of National Emergency is in place along with an Epidemic Notice to help ensure the continuity of essential Government business. Under the COVID-19 Alert Level Four measures, all non-essential businesses are closed, including bars, restaurants, cinemas and playgrounds. Schools are closed and all indoor and outdoor events are banned. Essential services will remain open, including supermarkets and pharmacies. Lockdown measures are expected to remain in place for around four weeks, with Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern warning there will be zero tolerance for people ignoring the restrictions, with police able to enforce them if required.  (Photo by Mark Mitchell - Pool/Getty Images)

"This is a completely different model," he said.

"It's about making sure we have trained staff available when they're required and they'll be in two places. One, alongside dog handlers who currently only work by themselves even though they deal with some of the most riskiest things we see on the frontline.

"Also, they'll work in existing teams that investigate organised crime."

Coster added emphasis on the new Armed Offenders Squad level trained officers not being armed unless required was a key factor in the announcement.

"This model has been designed to retain our standing as a generally unarmed police service which we see as a very important part of how we police.

"Policing in New  Zealand has a very different style to that of other countries and we think that's part of what keeps us all safe."

The new model will be rolled out next year.

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